


Change

by torib0o



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Betaed, Comfort, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-08
Updated: 2012-07-08
Packaged: 2017-11-09 10:57:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/454683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/torib0o/pseuds/torib0o
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reid has a nightmare and decides to give Derek a call. Originally posted Dec. 12, 2011.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Change

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I do not own Criminal Minds

Spencer Reid gasped as he jerked upright in his bed. His body was covered by a light sheen of sweat and his breathing was labored. 

The blinds in his bedroom were open, allowing enough light into the room to illuminate it. His eyes roamed about the space for a moment before he shut them and allowed a shudder to tear through his body. 

Another nightmare.

They were becoming more frequent and he shook his head, trying to rid his mind of the images that it was forcing him to relive and in that moment, he wished he could turn it off, turn everything off and not relate what he was seeing to a random fact or statistic because it only meant seeing the image that much longer.

After getting himself a glass of water, Reid climbed back into bed and looked at the clock at his bedside. 

3:24 AM

His mind was still racing and he knew it wouldn’t stop, knew it would be impossible to get back to sleep. He picked up his cell phone and looked down at the screen for a long while whilst rubbing his thumb over it before going into his recent calls and pushing one of the first numbers on the list.

\--

Derek Morgan groaned softly as he heard music playing in his ears; dulcet, familiar tones. He would have kept sleeping if his brain hadn’t alerted him to the fact that the music he was hearing was not a product of his subconscious, but a very specific ringtone for one person.

He blindly reached for his phone on his nightstand and yawned as he caught the time in the LCD screen of his clock before answering the call.

“Reid?” he mumbled. “Do you have any idea what time it is?”

There was silence on the other line save for the sound of quiet breathing and Morgan couldn’t help but furrow his brow as he pushed himself up a bit.

“Reid, are you alright? Talk to me, Pretty boy.”

A breath of relief. 

“…Did I wake you?” he asked softly and Morgan could hear the rustling of Reid’s sheets as the younger man moved about in bed.

Derek smiled the slightest bit as he leaned against his headboard. “No, I’m always awake at 3:30 in the morning,” he said and he couldn’t help but chuckle as he heard Reid laugh softly on the other line.

“I guess I got lucky calling you then,” he said softly. “I was…having them again.”

Silence for a moment.

“The nightmares?” Morgan asked and when he received only a grunt in response, he sighed. For Reid to call him at such an hour because of nightmares said two things to Morgan; for the man to call him in the first place, they must have been quite bad and secondly, Reid must’ve been nervous.

Over time, their friendship had been changing, evolving and neither of them were sure when or where it began, but neither disliked it. It was comforting to know that there was always a support system deeper than the team and closer than family when it was necessary. There had always been touches, glances, and quietly exchanged words between them, but now, those touches lingered, those glances were more heated, and the words that they exchanged were often followed by time spent at each other’s respective homes.

The time that they spent together hadn’t gone unnoticed and garnered a bit of playful ribbing from JJ and Prentiss while Garcia thought it was the sweetest thing she’d ever seen, urging the two of them to ‘just get together’.

“Do you want to tell me what they’re about?” Morgan asked gently and he could hear Reid’s frustrated sigh as the man rubbed at his face.

“I keep seeing it in my mind over and over,” he said as he looked up at his ceiling. “It’s more than a bit frightening because…this isn’t something impossible. In fact, it’s highly probable which is the worst thing about nightmares like this, the ones that are so realistic, because I can imagine how I’d react and…I don’t want to think about things like this.”

Morgan was silent for a moment before asking, “Was it about a case?” 

“It was…at the end of a case. The unsub was in police custody, but then…” He trailed off and Morgan furrowed his brow.

“Reid?” 

Silence.

“…Spencer?”

Morgan could hear the other’s shuddering breath along with quiet sniffling and he sat silently, simply waiting for the other to collect himself. 

“You were injured,” he said softly. “Fatally.”

Morgan winced. “Spencer,” he said the other’s name gently, not knowing what he could do to ease the other’s mind other than speak his name, speak to him. “Spencer, it was just a dream.”

“I _know_ that,” he said a bit defensively. “It could happen though. It’s very likely that one day you'll get shot somewhere or that you just _have_ to rush onto a scene not wearing a vest.”

He couldn’t help but sigh softly as he listened to the other’s breathing coupled with quiet hitches of breath and sniffles. He knew that sometimes he was reckless with his actions, but he hated the thought of worrying Reid so badly.

“Spencer, listen to me. I’m not going to go rushing into a situation completely unprotected unless I don’t see any other option and I’m going to do everything in my power to avoid harm, but if I can’t, I can’t. These risks come with the job; you know that.” He paused, wanting to see if Reid had anything to say, but when he didn’t, Derek only nodded to himself. “Besides, I’ve got to watch myself now more than ever.”

“And why is that?” Reid asked quietly.

“Because I’ve got you now.”

Reid looked up from where he was plucking at a string on his blanket, pursing his lips and considering the other’s statement for a long moment. 

Morgan had him? 

Reid could read into those five simple words for days, but he knew that when Morgan spoke, he was, more often than putting everything he had to say out there. There was likely no deep meaning behind the statement, though it was something affectionate, something meaningful.

“You’ve got me,” he repeated and Morgan chuckled.

“Yeah, Pretty boy, I’ve got you. I wouldn’t dream of doing anything stupid and leaving you behind when you might need me. I know you’re independent and can take care of yourself and all that, but…just like right now, when you need me, I want to always be there for you. Always, Spencer.”

Reid cleared his throat several times, not understanding why it was so tight all of a sudden or why his very being ached down to his core, but he only nodded.

“Thank you, Derek,” he whispered. 

Morgan hummed and nodded. “No problem. Now go to sleep. I’m gonna swing by early in the morning to get you and I don’t want you to be asleep on your feet when I get there,” he said with a smile.

The two said their goodnights and Reid feel asleep almost instantly after hanging up with Morgan, his sleep peaceful and void of any dreams or nightmares.

In the morning when Morgan came to get him, Reid was surprised when he was greeted with a kiss and cheeky grin as though it was something they did regularly. He only looked at Derek for a moment before he pulled the man inside and pressed his mouth to his.

They were late that morning, but neither of them really seemed to notice. Time had gotten away from them once they were inside of Reid’s home with hands roaming and lips traveling.

Their relationship had been changing quite obviously for some time, but they’d finally taken the plunge and passed a point that would be difficult to return from, however as they stood side by side, fixing their morning coffee, a look passed between the two of them and they knew that going back wouldn’t happen.

Change was a good thing.

 _'The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.'_  
-Alan Watts

\--  
End.


End file.
